The Time Britain Tried to Build an Aircraft Carrier Out of Ice: Inside Project Habakkuk, WWII’s Most Ambitious and Bizarre Military Experiment

Let’s set the stage: It’s World War II. The Nazis are dominating the Atlantic, German U-boats are turning supply ships into fish food, and the Allies are desperate for a solution. The answer? Build a warship—but not just any warship. Build one out of ice.

Yes, ice. Apparently, the stress of war had everyone losing their cool. This was Project Habakkuk, an idea so bizarre it makes the exploding whale incident seem reasonable. Spoiler alert: it didn’t work, but the attempt left behind one of the funniest and most ambitious chapters in military history.